Twitter launches Vine video app

Tweeters can now embed and share six second videos with the free app, initially only available to Apple devices

Twitter users can now embed video in their tweets using a new app called Vine.

But, just as Twitter limits tweets to 140 characters, Vine users will have to get their message across using just six seconds of video footage.

On the Twitter blog, Michael Sippey, Twitter's Vice President of Product, said: "Like Tweets, the brevity of videos on Vine (6 seconds or less) inspires creativity. Now that you can easily capture motion and sound, we look forward to seeing what you create."

Twitter's CEO Dick Costolo was quick to use the new technology, tweeting a six second video of him making steak tartar...

Co-Founder of Vine, Dom Hofmann said: "Posts on Vine are about abbreviation — the shortened form of something larger. They're little windows into the people, settings, ideas and objects that make up your life. They're quirky, and we think that's part of what makes them so special."

Each of the short and snappy videos are played on an infinite loop. The free app is currently only available from the Apple App store for use on iPhones and iPods but Twitter are "working to bring it to other platforms."